The A-level students of Northumberland have faced an incredibly tough time recently and we should be proud of them and all they have achieved.  However, thousands of young people will be bitterly disappointed today after the A level results that were announced yesterday.

Not only have they been robbed of the normal rites of passage, such as their end of school events, and face uncertainty about their plans for university or work, but now they are receiving results lower than expected which will affect their futures opportunities and choices.

Why? Because the assessment system has marked them down them down if they come from a disadvantage area.

Nearly 40 per cent of the young people in this country have been treated unfairly by being given at least a grade lower than they were expecting, while the proportion of privately educated students receiving A and A* is twice as high as the proportion in state schools.

Leader of the Northumberland Labour Group Susan Dungworth said: “Our young people have been badly let down.

“All those years of hard work mean nothing when you apply an algorithm that mirrors the inequalities in society.

“It is evident that the belief that the more privileged you are, the cleverer you are is the default position of the Conservative Party and so discrimination is hardwired into everything they do.

“They say students can appeal or re-take their exams, both of which options have a considerable cost to either the students or the school, which by their own admission are likely to be more disadvantaged.  Schools have still had to pay exam fees this year – and you may well ask for what?  Now they are going to have to pay. again to put this mess, not of their making right.

“I thought this government was all about levelling up. However, this slap in the face seems like a further effort to keep people down. It’s unbelievable. The government has no shame.”